


broken streak

by ndnickerson



Category: Nancy Drew - Carolyn Keene
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:16:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29146545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ndnickerson/pseuds/ndnickerson
Summary: Nancy's sworn off dating guys she meets on cases... and then she meets one more.
Kudos: 5





	broken streak

"Hey. Nickerson, hang on."

Force of habit had Ned patting his pocket, where he kept his work cell phone, as he put a smile on his face and closed the last few feet to McArthur's office. "What's up?"

McArthur glanced up from his monitor. "The op's coming in to close out the arson case. Thought you might want to be here for that."

Ned glanced at his watch, keeping his demeanor outwardly calm, stopping himself from glancing into the closest reflective surface just for a quick check. He gave McArthur a casual smile. "Well, if you think so."

McArthur laughed. "Go pop a mint. I think you have ten minutes."

Ned had quite literally stumbled onto the op, one afternoon when he had been driving back from a preliminary assessment meeting with a homeowner. He'd spotted smoke rising from a clearing on a road that seemed otherwise deserted and, thinking someone's burn pile had gotten out of control, had pulled over. He'd seen a blue car already parked there and had snapped a photo with the license plate in focus almost absently, almost by habit; it was his third summer working at the insurance company, and he was already thinking that way during his off hours, too, about gathering evidence and looking for clues.

The girl—

Well, she wasn't a girl, but it was amazing, how much a two-year difference had changed between seventeen and twenty-one.

She circled around the house when he approached, and when he asked to see ID, asked if she'd already called the fire department, she had turned a serene, amused glance on him, big blue eyes that were wiser, more cautious than they should have been. Yes, the fire department had been summoned. Yes, just as he had, she had spotted the smoke and pulled over. Could _he_ show _her_ some ID?

As it turned out, Nancy Drew had done a little work for the insurance company already, and McArthur had approved her helping investigate the homeowner's claim without a second thought.

And Ned... well, he'd come within a few heartbeats of falling in love with her.

He wasn't sure what there was between the two of them, or if she had a boyfriend, maybe a girlfriend. Nancy had seemed to relax with him pretty quickly after their formal introduction and her accepting the job; she cracked jokes and worked hard, and a few times, their conversation had definitely turned flirtatious.

But every time that flirtation had been on the edge of becoming something more, she had taken what felt like a deliberate step back, had redirected the conversation, had made some excuse to leave.

It wasn't his imagination. It had happened, over and over, like an irresistible impulse. And a small part of him was glad, for his own peace of mind, that he was about to spend a few days out of state, tracking down evidence for another case. She was definitely a distraction—from his other work, from almost everything else in his life.

But he went to the bathroom anyway, smoothed his hair, popped the mint McArthur had suggested. He scowled at a bit of stubble he had somehow missed while shaving.

As though she was going to grab him and plant a kiss on him as soon as they saw each other. She wasn't going to notice or care that his cheek wasn't completely smooth.

And yet, when he saw her a few minutes later, that was exactly how he felt—the ridiculous anxiety, the hyperawareness of everything. She had round frosted-frame sunglasses pushed up on her reddish-gold hair and an iced, whipped-cream-topped coffee in one hand, the sides of the cup already beaded with condensation thanks to the heat. A fresh dusting of freckles showed on her nose and cheeks, and those smart blue eyes brightened in genuine pleasure, matching the upward curve of her full lips, when she saw him.

Again, with the mixed signals. Why, if she was pleased to see him...

Ned's polite smile became a grin without consulting him, and he gestured at the other chair in McArthur's office. "Please."

"Thanks." He didn't think he was imagining that beat before she turned back to McArthur and cleared her throat; her tone changed when she spoke again, addressing them both. "He confessed. He'd made some promises to investors and wasn't going to make deadlines."

"The accelerant?"

Ned had to stop gazing over at her. "Soulful" was probably the adjective McArthur would land on later. He needed to just... stop, somehow.

"Something new he came up with, actually. He doesn't want to share, but he might consider it if it involves a plea deal."

"Good. Good. Excellent work." McArthur's tone could only be called hearty, and that faux-innocent expression had Ned a second away from rolling his eyes. "Anything else you can think of?"

Ned cleared his throat. "Just a few... last details."

"Great. Excellent work, Ms. Drew. I'll... leave you in Nickerson's capable hands."

Ned managed not to snicker as he accompanied her out; he didn't have his own private office, and he didn't want to see how many of his coworkers made excuses to drop by his cubicle, just to see how things were going with Nancy. They walked out, and Nancy thanked him with a nod for holding the door for her.

Heat was rising off the pavement. Ned nodded at Nancy's drink. "That looks pretty good."

"It is." She took a long sip, and Ned avoided looking at her lips. He just smiled and patted his hip pocket again.

"Want to go for one?"

The words managed to sound casual, somehow. She responded with a smile, a tip of her head.

The coffee shop was packed. Ned went through the line and walked out with an iced coffee, to find Nancy with her sunglasses on. She was scrolling through her phone, but she put it away when he joined her.

"Some loose ends?"

"One," he replied. The first sip of his coffee hit him with a jolt; he closed his eyes for a moment, just savoring the bliss of it. "You have a boyfriend."

She didn't react with shock, surprise, any of it, just a slight twist of her lips. "No. Not right now."

"Girlfriend?"

That provoked a chuckle. "No girlfriend."

He took another sip of his coffee. "So... why," he began, but he couldn't figure out how to word it and not sound like a massive jerk.

She smiled. "Eh, the question I think you're asking... I made a rule, after _a lot_ of bad decisions. No dating guys I meet on cases."

Ned's mouth dropped open. "You're saying this would be a bad decision?"

She took another sip of her coffee. "Given my track record, yeah. Undoubtedly. One hundred percent."

Ned scoffed, shifting his weight. "I just..."

She held up a hand and began ticking off fingers. "Sociopath. Lied about his age."

"Like by how much?"

"His daughter's three years younger than I am."

Ned sucked in air through his teeth with a wince. "Real winner, huh."

"Yeah. I didn't say I _accepted_ when he asked me out." She ticked off the next finger. "No, the divorce _wasn't_ final. Just needed another week to cash out of the smuggling ring he was half-running. Wanted to make me his _second_ live-in girlfriend even though I was underage at the time. Had just asked out my best friend."

"Please tell me there's some overlap between some of these."

"Probably." She shrugged. "It all kinda blurs."

Ned chuckled again. "So if I'm none of the above?"

"That wasn't even an exhaustive list." She pushed down her sunglasses a little and peered at him over the frames. "Do you like to pretend you're a psychic?"

"Only after a couple of shots." He grinned, and she grinned too.

"So." Ned took another thoughtful pull of his coffee. "I have to fly out tomorrow. I'll be gone for a few days."

"What a coincidence!" She flashed him another sunny grin. "Me too."

"Denver?"

She snapped her fingers in regret that was probably feigned, but maybe it wasn't. "Not this time."

"Maybe next time."

Their gazes met, and there was no pushing it off, no pretending it was anything else, this electricity between them.

"So, when I get back from Denver, maybe we can run into each other. Meet again for the first time. No case. Just..."

She smiled. "Just this."

He nodded. "Just two people who have this connection."

She touched her chin. "And, considering everything else... if things go badly, and I lose my in at the insurance company..."

Ned shrugged. "I'm sure they'll choose you over me. I'm just a summer employee. My uncle's golf buddies with the guy who runs the place. And I'm not about to bad-mouth you like that."

"Again, just disregarding all my prior experience like that."

Ned shrugged. "You've never met a guy like me."

She smiled. "Maybe," she murmured. "Maybe. And it's very sweet of you," she said, her syrupy-sweet tone deeply sarcastic, "to bend my own rules for me. Really shows you getting off to a great start."

"How else," he replied, moving another inch toward her, "am I supposed to show how different I am?"

"I guess by figuring out whatever the opposite of a serial-cheater jerk sociopath is."

"What a coincidence." He couldn't help it; his gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips, then went back up. "Monogamous, nice..."

"Empathetic."

"In the extreme." He moved another half-inch. "How different am I? As different as it's possible to be, I think. How different will _this_ ," he gestured between them, "be? As different as it's possible to be. I've never met anyone like you."

She studied him, her gaze intense, and he didn't miss when her own gaze dropped to his lips. "And I... am _really_ hoping I've never met anyone like you."

**Author's Note:**

> This story was originally posted elsewhere (see my "about me" page in my profile). If you enjoyed it, please consider leaving feedback!


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